Becoming Animagi: Gold Version
by Spongyllama
Summary: One year after Red Version, Harry must work alone to defeat Voldemort's new army, Team Death Eaters, and Ron goes on a solitary journey with one goal: To be the greatest Pokemon master. Ever. HP/Pokemon crossover. AU, more Ron-centric. (Indefinite hiatus?)
1. I: HARRY: PROLOGUE

Please read _Red Version_ if you haven't already. This takes place a year later, between _Half-Blood Prince_ and _Deathly Hallows_. I shouldn't have to remind you that it's completely AU.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** I have decided to completely rewrite this fanfiction. I apologize to anyone who may not like this, but I cannot make myself continue this fic if I don't like what I've already done with it and where it's going. So hopefully anyone whose interested will stay by and see what I have to write!

**DISCLAIMER:** JK Rowling and Game Freak are the great creators of _Harry Potter_ and the _Pokémon_ franchise, respectively, not me. I only take credit in writing this. Anything you recognize is almost definitely from one of those franchises. I will include quotes from both the _Harry Potter_ series and the _Pokemon_ anime and games, and I don't own these either.

**BECOMING ANIMAGI: GOLD VERSION**

**CHAPTER I: PROLOUGE: HARRY**

_"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...and either must die at the hands of the other for neither can life while the other survives..."_

Harry watched Hedwig rustle her feathers in her sleep as he leaned quietly against his bed frame, his wand and glasses beside him. He couldn't sleep; all he could think of was the way Dumbledore had fallen, and Snape's emotionless face as he had said those unforgivable words. And for what? A fake locket with a hastily scribbled note?

He had known about the prophecy for a year. A whole year. It seemed like so long ago, when Sirius had toppled through the swaying veil, so long that there was no way it could have only been a year. No way...

And then, that was the same year that he and Ron had stopped speaking. It was playful at first, the challenges like "You may have beaten Onix this time, Harry, but I'll get you!" with a nudge from Ron's elbow and a couple of exchanged laughs, but it amounted to much more over time. Harry thought that Ron's jealousy at his amazing Magikarp's Hydro Pump would cool down, but it never did. But it was all right, Harry didn't miss him.

Well...maybe. Just a little.

On his windowsill sat a stack of unopened letters from Hermione. Begging him to reconsider, he expected, reconsider the journey that Harry knew he had to take alone. He would _not_ let Hermione get tangled up in everything that he had to do. He would defeat Voldemort and his team of Death Eaters, or he would die trying. He didn't like to think that the latter was much more likely.

He glanced at the clock on his bedside table, which he could just barely make out because his glasses were still sitting beside him. The red glow illuminated just a very small amount of brown desk space. It was 11:40 AM, July 30th. His birthday began in twenty minutes, and he would be seventeen.

He would leave soon. There was no other choice, he had accepted that by now. He was going to leave Privet Drive forever, take his bag and a set of six Poke Balls Professor Dumbledore had given him and his wand, and manage all by himself. No Ron, no Hermione, and no help. This was his journey and he would have to do it himself. No one jumping in front of a wand before him to sacrifice their life just to prolong his just a little longer. But there was no fooling himself any longer. He knew that Voldemort would find him sooner or later. This time, he wouldn't kill anyone else.

He glanced at the clock again. Eight more minutes. He sat up straight, and put his glasses on. He grabbed his wand, and put it in the front pocket of his Muggle jeans. He had one set of robes in his bag, just in case, but he felt that this way would be much safer.

He looked at Hedwig, who had woken up, disturbed, by his rustling and preparing.

"All right, girl," he said to her, walking over to the cage. "I'm leaving Privet Drive, so I guess this is it." Her big amber eyes studied him. "I'm going to let you out, Hedwig. Maybe...maybe you can go live with Hermione. Just...be careful, okay?" She continued to look at him, unabashed. "I...I'm sorry."

He opened her cage, and the window. Warm summer air blew in. He walked over to his pack and picked it up, and headed for the door. He would leave the moment the Trace was lifted. Hedwig hooted meaningfully, and without looking at her, Harry said, "I'm sorry, Hedwig. I just...I have to defeat Voldemort, and I can't have anyone with me. Maybe...we'll see each other again." She hooted again, but he ignored her. He had told himself there would be no goodbyes. And there wouldn't be.

As the clock was just about to turn to midnight, Harry shut the door to his bedroom and walked toward the front door.

Hedwig watched from the window as he stood on the front doorstep, observing his watch, his eyes averted away from the house – and when both the clock on his bedside table and his watch turned to midnight, he Disapparated.

**Author's Note:** Te gusta?


	2. II: RON

**Author's Note:** Rewrite chapter 2. I'm doing a lot of Poke-research for this fic, so review when yoo are done, yesh?

**BECOMING ANIMAGI: GOLD VERSION**

**CHAPTER II: RON**

Ron glanced down at his map. It reminded him just a little of Harry's old Marauder's Map, because it told him where he was in the world at all times – but it was just a little less cool. Right now, it read, he was nearing the northern end of route 21, toward a town he was told was called Pallet. He glanced up from where he stood just at the bow of the boat and grinned as he saw what looked like tall bushy trees and tall grass forming over the horizon.

He turned around and leaned against the railing, watched the sailors bustling about the small vessel in preparation to land. He had been lucky that he caught one of the rare ships to Pallet town, as most of the trips out of Vermillion City only went to a "Cinnabar Island" and the region next to Kanto, Johto.

"Still another fifteen minutes or so until you can get off, sonny," a brawny-looking sailor said to him from a few feet away as he carried something under his muscular arms. "Gotta get the cargo off first, since that was the main priority." Ron nodded, understanding.

Ron sat down and pulled out a pamphlet he had received upon entering Kanto.

_Welcome to the spectacular region of Kanto!_

_Home of some of the earliest discovered Pokemon known to man, the Kanto region boasts as a wonderful tourist attraction to men, women, and children as well as new and veteran Pokemon trainers from the regions of Johto to the west, Hoenn to the southwest, and Sinnoh to the north, as well as the far away Unova._

_Kanto is most well-known for an abundance of historical places to visit and extremely powerful Pokemon trainers, like gym leaders Lieutenant Surge, "The Lightning American," and Blaine, "The Hotheaded Quiz Master." Great tourist spots include the Celadon City, the City of Rainbow Colors, as well as the infamous Pokemon Tower located in Lavender Town. An enormous, well-profiting organization is Silph Co. in Saffron City._

_Pokemon trainers spring up from every corner of the marvelous Kanto region, usually obtaining a starter Pokemon from Professor Oak in Pallet Town in the west –_

And that had been as far as Ron read when he obtained the pamphlet. What he now recognized to be a hasty move, jumping aboard the first ship heading into Pallet Town, he shook off as simple Gryffindor instinct. Instead of trying to find an explanation of what this place was, he took the little information Hermione had given him about Pokemon over a year ago and ran with it. And he promised himself he wouldn't have any regrets.

His eyes were lowered to the pamphlet, but his eyes were unfocused, unseeing.

This was his new dream: To be a Pokemon master. True, he had never thought that merely boarding a ship in England would lead him to a country that, as far as he was aware, no one else knew of besides those in it, but somehow...somehow he accepted that this was his fate now. To become the ultimate Pokemon master in the world – or, at least, to beat Harry to the punch.

Finally, _finally, _he would be better than all five of his brothers, people would pay more attention to him than Ginny, the "sweet" little girl of the family, and people would know his name and stop thinking of him as "Harry Potter's best friend, the Weasley kid."

Slowly, Ron felt the wind stop blowing as hard through his red hair and he glanced over his shoulder, and he grinned again.

Not that far away, he could see a sign:

_Pallet Town  
A Pure White Beginning._

And it was a weird feeling, but a part of him felt like this was a home he had never known. A home away from both of his homes (referring, of course, to the Burrow and Hogwarts). Mixed with the salty sea air, he caught a gentle floral breeze and breathed in.

Yes, this was it. The start of his new life. His new beginning. The newest chapter in his story. And he was going to make it go the way he wanted, this time. For the first time in his life, he would make this own decisions and wouldn't be dragged down by Hermione's worrisome half-nagging or Harry's irrational behavior. He stuffed the pamphlet in his bag.

"Hey, kid!" the sailor from before yelled in his direction. "Time to go!"

Ron shouldered his bag, stood up shakily due to the rocking of the vessel, and walked towards the exit platform after he steadied himself.

**Author's Note:** Seemed like a good place to stop because of what comes next, but in your opinion is it too short?


	3. III: RON

**Author's Note:** I've been having a hard time to get into this, but I _really_ want to write it. So if you're interested then stay tuned and if you've already reviewed or subbed then thanks!

**BECOMING ANIMAGI: GOLD VERSION**

**CHAPTER III: RON**

"You take care now, honey! And remember, Professor Oak's lab is to the southeast of town! Don't worry, you'll know it when you see it!"

Ron nodded at the kind woman waving him out of the inn. Swinging his bag over his shoulder, he walked at a steady pace down a dirt path in the direction the woman had pointed. There were very few houses in Pallet Town, all small houses with bright red roofs and mailboxes. It was a place he honestly would not mind spending the rest of his life. The gentle sea breeze was one that he never embraced, even when sitting on the shore of the enormous Black Lake with Harry and Hermione. Maybe he would look into staying here longer.

He passed two almost identical houses, and in front of the first one he glanced at the mailbox: Red's House, it said. He wondered who this 'Red' was. He hurried past the next one, ignoring the sign.

Finally, his heart leaped a little. He could see it, a large, round roof to a scientific, important, practical-looking building. He jogged to the front of it and grinned broadly as he read the sign in front of it:

OAK POKEMON RESEARCH LAB

He hurried inside.

There was...a very different feeling in here, Ron noticed immediately. Like he was in a place of the highest esteem in Kanto, like things he could hardly imagine started here. Majestic journeys he read about in the pamphlet about Kanto, and he was, hopefully, about to be a part of it.

As he walked slowly inside, looking around, he almost ran into a man with a white lab coat and thick glasses, who looked him over and said, "I study Pokemon as Prof. Oak's aide."

Ron blinked. "Er, okay. So I'm in the right place, then."

"What may I do for you?"

"Erm... this is where I get a Pokemon, right?"

The lab assistant seemed very, very startled. "Well, yes, ten-year-olds come here to obtain a starter Pokemon but you're, erm..."

Ron stared at him. "I'm what?"

"You don't quite have the appearance of a ten year old."

"Er..."

Ron glanced around. A few people around the room were staring at him. Whether they were taking in his bright red hair, his freckles, or the fact that he was probably twice as tall as a ten-year-old, he did not know. But something told him that he had to play this very well in order to get what he wanted.

Apparently, seventeen-year-olds don't often come to Kanto from towns like Ottery St. Catchpole.

He looked the scientist in the eye. "I'm ten years old. I don't know how to prove it to you, but I'm ten years old."

The assistant looked around hesitantly, but nodded firmly and said to him, "All right, sonny. Go back there -" he pointed to a white looking area beyond a few bookshelves. "Professor Oak is waiting for a few new trainers now, they might already be here. Guess you're the third."

Ron nodded and darted away before that scientist, who he was sure was giving him a strange look as he walked away, could ask him any more questions.

Walking past the bookshelves he had been directed towards, Ron immediately saw two students that looked even younger than the titchy little first years, one looking terrified and the other practically bouncing off the walls like a rubber ball with excitement. There was a third unoccupied seat next to the nervous-looking one, which he took, not quite sure what to expect. But as far as he could tell, this was the place he was looking for.

It was true that Ron knew extremely little about Pokemon. After he and Harry began to have disagreements every day, Hermione decided to withhold information that either of them could possibly use against the other, such as the ways of battling Pokemon and training. He came to the Pokemon world not knowing what to expect, but here he was and he was going to roll with whatever his heart and mind instinctively told him to do.

But now, to be honest, as he waited here with two kids seven years younger than him, he was beginning to have second thoughts. It was like he was being sorted again – and the fact that these two children were just about the age for it didn't help. But he couldn't help feeling that this would be easier. Yeah, the twins had mentioned wrestling a mountain troll in order to be sorted, but that had just turned out to be an easy process of sitting on a stool and wearing a hat, right? How hard could this be?

Would he be given some kind of test? Hermione had mentioned types, right? Onix was Ground/Rock-type, he knew that, and Magikarp was pure Water-type. Onix evolved into Steelix via trade – not that he understood the concept – and Magikarp turned into a fierce water dragon, Gyarados, that was half Flying-type. That was probably basic information in this world, but it was definitely better than nothing.

Hey, if he could scrape an Exceeds Expectations on his Potions O.W.L. after five years of Snape's lousy teaching, he could do anything. Right? Right.

Somewhere around him, a light turned on, and Ron jumped out of his reverie. A tall, aging man in another white lab coat walked to the table to the eager trainers' right and placed three red and white spheres on it, as well as three red books. Ah, a book? Ron didn't come to the Pokemon world to study more...

The old man turned to the three seated before him. He didn't even appear to notice Ron's height towering over the others.

"Hello there! Welcome to the world of Pokemon!" he addressed them merrily. "My name is Oak. People call me the Pokemon Professor!"

Professor? What did he teach? Pokemon-ology? Great.

"This world is inhabited by creatures called Pokemon, as you three should very well know. For some people, Pokemon are pets. Others use them for fighting. Myself... I study Pokemon as a profession.

"First, what are your names?" Professor Oak looked at the kid to Ron's far right, the thrilled-beyond-belief one.

"Chester!"

Next was the intimidated-looking girl. "I'm Leaf."

She certainly was shaking like one.

"...And you?"

"Oh, er – Ron. Ron Weasley."

Professor Oak nodded once. "All right, then. Chester, Leaf, and Ron Weasley. Your own Pokemon legend is about to unfold! A world of dreams and adventures with Pokemon awaits! Let's go!"

Professor Oak turned to the table with the spheres and books on them.

"All right. Now, each of you may have one of these Pokemon. They are Bulbasaur, a Grass-type, Charmander, a Fire-type, and Squirtle, a Water-type. Each of these three Pokemon are very rare and I'm one of the only people in the world who has a plethora of them to give away to enthusiastic and aspiring trainers. Now, perhaps you'd like to decide amongst yourselves who wants to go first?"

The boy named Chester shot up out of his chair immediately. "Charmander. Gimme, gimme, gimme." Professor Oak chuckled jovially and nodded at Chester's enthusiasm. He picked up the left Poke Ball and gave it to Chester, who clutched the ball to his heart like it was keeping him alive.

Ron glanced sideways at Leaf, who hid behind her little white hat. He could just barely hear her whisper, "You can go next." He shrugged and stood up.

On the table he could now see three pictures. One of a lizard, one a turtle, and...something else. Bulbasaur, he assumed.

He stood there, probably with some stupid expression on his face, his mouth gaping open. He felt like he could stand there for hours and not know which would be the better decision. Charmander or Squirtle, fire or water... But then it clicked.

Squirtle was a Water-type, yes? And Magikarp was a Water-type, too. Sure, maybe you couldn't fight water with water...but one simple phrase popped into Ron's mind.

_Know the enemy._

He would take Squirtle, learn just how to use the Water-type, and use it against his stupid best friend and then, once and for all, they would know who the better trainer was.

Ron looked directly at Professor Oak and said, "I choose Squirtle."

Professor Oak nodded again and said, "Good choice. This Pokemon is very energetic. Now, Leaf, this means that Bulbasaur is –"

The door at the very far end of the lab slammed open. Ron peered over his shoulder and beyond where the bookcases split the room in half, and he saw a short kid, looked like a second or third year to him, with spikey brown hair and a black jacket.

"Yo, Gramps!"

Ron was clutching his Pokeball in a sweaty grip as this kid strolled past him, turned on his heel, and stared down the three new trainers before him.

Professor Oak blinked. "Blue? What are you doing here?"

The kid scoffed, and Ron narrowed his eyes. It was obvious that this little shrimp thought he was superior to the beginner trainers that stood before him, even Ron who was clearly years older and inches taller.

_"Well,"_ this Blue kid sneered, "I was coming down from Viridian to visit Daisy and she told me she saw a few new kids coming in here. Figured they were new trainers, and I thought I'd see what new competition I would have." Blue shook a strand of light brown hair out of his eyes and glanced at each kid in turn. "I'll give you my expertise Blue opinion. This one-" he said, motioning at Chester, "Is too energetic, and it won't last. You'll be too overenthusiastic and your Pokemon won't be able to keep up. _This_ one-" he said, waving his hand at Leaf as Chester stopped bouncing in his seat, looking somewhat offended, "Is the opposite. She'll be too afraid to push her Pokemon _and_ herself far enough, and she'll find herself stopping at Cerulean. She'll be avoiding eye contact like Zubats in a cave." Leaf blushed and looked at her feet, as if she knew that everything Blue was saying was true.

Blue turned a little to survey Ron next. His eyebrows raised, he stood in a position that Ron would probably call 'sassy', and he said, "This one..." but he trailed off. He seemed to be lost for words. Ron rolled his eyes when Blue turned around without saying anything.

Professor Oak shook his head. "Blue, you're too critical," he said. "These kids haven't even had a chance to step out of his lab with their Pokemon yet, and your judgments could prove to be hurtful than helpful." Blue just shrugged, and Oak shook his head again. "I know you're trying to make them better trainers, Blue, but you should at least wait until they have a battle and get to know their Pokemon before you criticize them."

Blue leaned against a wall. "Gramps, if I had had this sort of advice when I was beginning I would have turned out better. Well, I don't know how much better I could get..." He had a sloppy smirk before he remembered himself. "Fine. Have it your way. I won't help."

Oak sighed. "Well if you have any advice that's actually helpful, like simple starting tips, I'm sure these beginners would be grateful. If not, I'll just move on." Without waiting for a reply from Blue, Oak turned to the three kids sitting side-by-side before him. "I'm going to give you three things that will help you greatly on your journey. First," he said, holding up the little red books that Ron had noticed earlier, "the Pokedex. This is a sort of encyclopedia that you log each and every Pokemon you see in. You can later pull up this information with ease to see the Pokemon's elemental type, average height and weight, and a brief description the Pokemon. It will also tell you whether or not you have caught a particular Pokemon or if you have just seen it.

"Next, I'm going to give you a town map. It's called that, but it's really a map of the entire Kanto region. It's basic and you can't actually see pictures of the things - but it will help you to determine where you are and what direction you should be heading.

"And the last thing I will give you are Pokeballs. As you can see by matching up the Pokeballs you're holding that contain your Pokemon and the ones that are on the table, these are the devices that hold your Pokemon while you are not using them. They are invaluable tools that are the backbone of any Pokemon trainer. If you run out, you can always buy them at the Pokemart. There are upgrades, such as great balls and ultra balls, and you'll probably find them as you move east."

Professor Oak paused for a moment to catch his breath. He glanced at Blue to see if he had any input, but Blue was looking sharply out a window, apparently trying to ignore anything happening in here. Professor Oak began speaking again.

"Now, I'm just going to give you two more pieces of advice, and then I'll let you go truly begin your Pokemon journey. Firstly, and this may sound strange coming from _the_ Pokemon Professor, but I don't want you to think that being involved with Pokemon is limited to being a trainer. There are endless possibilities out there - to list a few, you could work in a Pokemon center, you could breed Pokemon, work in a Day Care, or babysit Pokemon. There are so many things, and training is not for everyone. If you ever feel that you are not able to train your Pokemon well but would still like to _work_ with Pokemon, perhaps you might consider one of these options. I'm sure you could ask around cities to see what more options are.

"The only other advice I'm going to give you is that if you don't know where to begin, it might be a good idea to travel north and stop in Viridian city. While I would not recommend immediately jumping into a fight with the gym leader -" Professor Oak paused for a moment, the sides of his mouth twitching as Blue threw him a filthy look from the corner "- there is a building called the Trainer's School that you should be able to find easily enough. Beyond Viridian City is Viridian Forest, which always seems to be filled with rookie trainers eager to fight. This would be a good place to begin." Professor Oak nodded a moment to himself, as if trying to remember if he forgot to mention anything. When he was sure he didn't, he looked up again.

"Well, my young trainers - that should be about all the advice that I could give you. I bid you a safe, enjoyable and yet challenging journey, and I assure you that if you should ever need any particular Pokemon advice, you can always give me a call. I'm here almost all the time, or even one of my scientists could probably answer your question. Well...have a good journey!"

Ron, Leaf, and Chester all stood, some more excitedly than others. Chester, ever a bundle of energy, waved his hand in the air with a "Thanks, man!", jumped over his chair, and bolted out of the lab with some scientists shouting "Hey!" behind him. Leaf followed him with her eyes uncertainly before turning shyly to Professor Oak, muttering a "Thank you, sir." and also quickly leaving, her head down.

Ron gave an uncertain glance towards Blue who had returned to staring suddenly out the window before looking back at Professor Oak. The old man followed where his gaze was and stepped next to Ron. They were about the same height, but Professor Oak still seemed unabashed by the fact that Ron clearly was not a ten-year-old.

Nevertheless, Oak leaned in and muttered, "Don't worry about him. He's always been a little temperamental, but his heart is in the right place. If you ever run into him anywhere in Kanto, don't pay attention if he says something that comes out as rude." Ron nodded again uncertainly.

"Er...right," Ron stuttered. "And, thanks," he said, holding up the Pokeball that contained Squirtle. Slowly, he turned around and began heading out of the lab.

"If you ever need any advice, I'll be happy to help!" Professor Oak called out behind him, and Ron nodded and pushed open the door back into Pallet Town.

He was met with a fresh breeze and the thick fragrance of flowers. He walked a few paces until he had his hands on a fence. His Pokeball was now hanging on his belt, and he looked out at the strip of salt water that looked like it led out to the ocean. It was the way he had come, but he would be leaving a very different way. It was curious, almost. He had been stuck in a run down old house called the Burrow all his life, and the only time he didn't spend there was at a grand old castle that was completely the opposite. No matter where he went, there were people who didn't pay him the attention he needed, or didn't accept that he was more than just the sixth son in a line of red-headed Weasley kids. Now, he was out in the open, a vast country that no one in England had ever been in but a place that Ron was very certain was real. A place _no one_ in his entire world had heard of, but a place that had been right here all along.

Like the town in Pallet Town said, it was a pure white beginning. He had his new Pokemon, his Onix form, and all the time in the world to make himself into what he needed to be. He could forget all the worries of the Wizarding World, all the Voldemort nonsense and Death Eater conflicts, and he could do it without any feeling of regret. He was in Kanto now, not England. And he was a Pokemon Trainer.

He pulled out the map Oak had given him. It was better than the other one he had gotten. This one reminded him more of the moving pictures back home. It had a blinking indicator of where he was, which was currently Pallet Town, and he would be following Oak's advice and heading north to Viridian City. He didn't have any doubts - he didn't _need_ to have any doubts.

He nodded to no one but himself, turned on his heel, and walked down the path of short grass to an opening in the trees he knew to be Route 1. _This_ was the beginning of his Pokemon journey, and he was ready.

He headed past the house that he saw earlier to be "Red's House" and towards the opening in the trees. He was about to pass the border out of Pallet Town when he heard someone shout behind him.

"Yo!"

He paused, unsure if he should turn around. It probably wasn't directed at him, after all, who knew him in this town enough to want to talk to him? He slowly began walking again.

"Wait, tall kid!"

Now he was positive that the male voice was talking to him. He turned on his heel again and saw, to his slight displeasure, Blue strutting towards him like he owned the town.

"What do you want?" Ron said, trying to sound as though he didn't care. When Blue caught up to him, he had a knowing look on his face.

"I didn't want to say anything with Gramps in there," he said, putting on hand on his side in a casual stance. "But I gotta know. You're not really ten years old, are ya?"

Ron ran a hand through his red hair. "Er..." he didn't suppose there was any point hiding it. "No, I'm seventeen."

Blue laughed a little, but this time it wasn't a cocky laugh. "Yeah, I figured. You don't look like you're out of Kanto. Your clothes are weird and you have an accent I've never heard, not even in Johto." He could apparently see Ron's uncomfortable squirm at this, and shook it off. "Well anyways, I just wanted to make sure. It's not really a big deal, it's just not something I'm used to." Blue began to walk passed him and stopped, as if trying to find something else to say.

When it appeared that he didn't have anything, he shook his head. Without looking at Ron, Blue shouted, "Smell ya later, then!" before he ran out of Pallet Town and in the same direction Ron was heading.

Ron Weasley was left blinking, watching the grass sway where Blue had stepped on it and the tree branches move in the wind. With nothing else to do, Ron just shrugged and followed him, but at a much slower, more patient pace.

_This will be an interesting journey,_ Ron thought as he stepped onto Route 1.

**Author's Note:** I'd really like to know if you think I'm going in the right direction or not. I already have much of the whole fic planned out - it will alternate between Harry's journey and Ron's, but there will be more Ron chapters. And the fact that they're Animagi will play into it, but it won't have the biggest influence on everything. Please tell me what you think :3

Smell ya all later~


	4. IV: HARRY

**Author's Note:** I don't really know how to describe London, because the only real city I've ever been to is New York. So if I ever try to describe England and the characteristics I give it aren't really true, just ignore it because I've never been there :P

**BECOMING ANIMAGI: GOLD VERSION**

**CHAPTER IV: HARRY**

Harry couldn't believe it. Less than a day out of Privet Drive and he was already engaged in a wild chase in the middle of London by Death Eater grunts shooting spells of all colors and varieties at him, but never a Killing Curse. And Harry wasn't surprised - he knew that Voldemort wanted to kill Harry himself.

Harry thundered down a dark, wet alley, trying any maneuver at all to throw off the Death Eaters, to make them think that he went anywhere else. His footsteps were hard, and he wouldn't last long like this - his knees were beginning to buckle and he was running out of breath. On his way down this particular alley he picked up a rock as he ran by it before skirting down another alley to the left. As he heard the Death Eaters approach, he threw the rock hard down another path, and grinned in victory as the Death Eaters followed the path that the rock was thrown, assuming that that had been a noise made by Harry in his attempt to flee. That was a same trick he had used with the Basilisk in second year, and it had worked then - but a giant snake is very different than two large grown men in black enough clothes to blend into the night.

Although he probably couldn't afford it, Harry sunk down against the wall he was leaning against, trying to catch his breath. He felt as though he had just run three miles - his lungs were constricting and his throat was dry. His glasses were smudged and his hair was matted, his clothes filthy. He cursed the fact that he hadn't had more time to practice Apparating. He could do it just fine when he had enough time to concentrate, to think of the three D's - but when he was being chased like this, he didn't have much enough time to think.

It would be like this for a long time, he expected. Darting from place to place, hiding in the shadows - he was stupid to think that he could have walked around London freely, even if he was dressed as a Muggle. Unless he could somehow change his appearance and blend in with the rest of the tourists, he would never make it - but he didn't have enough experience with human transfiguration and there wasn't any Polyjuice potion for him to disguise as someone else. The only things he had were a small amount of bronze, silver, and gold coins and an even smaller amount of Muggle money. But he could never get into Gringott's and go to Harry Potter's vault without being detected.

He was probably going to die out here.

Harry closed his eyes and leaned his head against the cold brick of whatever building he had his back to. He tried to rethink what he had done today - he had left Privet Drive at midnight and wandered London since then. He explored the Muggle parts of the city, exploring monuments and things he hadn't even thought about since he had still gone to Muggle school. He had been busy contemplating what his plan of action should be. When the sun had started to go down and thousands of tourists were roaming the warm July evening streets, Harry had stuck himself in the thick of the crowd, assuming he would be safer than he really was. But he learned his mistake, and he now knew that going out in public anywhere at any time would be dangerous.

He put his head in his hands, rubbing his eyes underneath his glasses. This was a mistake. But he wouldn't go back to Privet Drive now, and he wouldn't go asking anyone for help, _especially_ not at the Burrow. They'd never let him go.

And Ron was probably there.

Harry shook his head. He couldn't think about this now.

What he needed to decide was where he was going to go. Could he find a tent and manage to live in the wilderness for as long as he needed to? But where would he get food? Could he find some old abandoned house or rent an apartment somewhere? No, he didn't have the money...

Of course! Harry glanced around him, as though suddenly afraid that people could read his thoughts. But he was safe, for now, because there was still no one in sight. He could go to Grimmauld Place. He doubted anyone would be there, and it was probably safe - from what Dumbledore had told him a year ago, it was still protected by the Order of the Phoenix but abandoned just in case. Yes, Harry thought. He had never wanted to enter that house again, but it was his best bet.

He raised himself to his feet and slung his bag over his shoulder. He began to gather the will he needed to Apparate, and was pretty close until something distracted him. The last thing he wanted to hear.

_"There he is!"_ Harry groaned as he looked towards where the sound came from, and braced himself. They were taking out their wands and he was taking out his, but he still did not want to fight - so he ran.

But like before, he knew he would never last long. They were two experienced Death Eaters, and they were much bigger than him. Harry may have been somewhat athletic from all those long years playing Quidditch, but he still had difficulty running a large distance. And now, as he was sprinting down dark alleyways, he knew that he was in for trouble unless he could escape again and Disapparate immediately.

A jet of golden light flew over his shoulder, smashing the side of a building. Dust and debris flew all around Harry but he continued to run through the mess - he ran left down another alley and hoped that the same dust caused by the Death Eater's spell would distract the Death Eater himself.

No such luck. Harry didn't have to look over his shoulder to know where those thundering footsteps were coming from, so he turned sharply down another alley in this apparent maze. At the end of this one, he recognized an escape - a way into a crowded London street. As much as he wanted the Muggles out there to be safe and unaware of the existence of magic to keep harmony in his world, he felt he had no other choice but to run out and lose himself in the crowd.

The Death Eaters were still following and he heard them pushing yelling people out of the way as Harry used his reflexes to dart in between shopping Muggles. He pushed them out of the way with his wand in his hand, praying that neither of the two stupid Death Eaters would hurt any of the innocent people.

Reluctantly, Harry saw another alleyway and despite what his conscience was telling him, he darted down this one, running as fast as he possibly could. He just needed to lose the Death Eaters for long enough to Apparate, and he was hoping that he might get that opportunity here.

But when he skidded to a stop at the dead end created by three empty buildings, Harry knew he was in trouble.

Without hesitating, he turned around at lightning speed and shouted a curse at the two Death Eaters that he knew were approaching. Their reactions were slower but their curses were stronger, more dangerous, so Harry found himself practically dancing to avoid them. He yelled curse after curse and shouted Shield Charm incantations, only extending the time until he knew the inevitable would happen. And all the while, he was pushing an idea to the back of his mind, knowing it was foolish and would only get him in more trouble than he was already in.

But as hexes flew out of his wand, he began to know that what he had in mind might be his only option. He was only prolonging it, and if he waited too long he might not even have _that_ option...

Sighing internally, he knew that it was his only chance at escaping. He couldn't afford a few moments of concentration to Disapparate, but hopefully he had enough practice that _this_ would world.

Shooting one or two last spells at the Death Eaters, Harry willed all his power as fast as he could into turning into the form he had taken over a year ago, the Magikarp that had so surprisingly defeated Ron.

He could hardly see in this form, or at least he couldn't see much of what was happening around him - from his position on the ground he could see directly skyward, but he didn't even need that - his mouth as angled in the right direction and luckily, the Death Eaters had been so stunned that they had stopped shooting, their wands probably pointing down and their mouths gaping open.

Taking advantage of their stupor, Harry gathered all the energy he could, praying it worked – and then shot an enormous burst of cold water out of his Magikarp mouth and directly into the Death Eaters. He did this for as long as he felt might be necessary, and as long as he could hold it, and then he stopped, flopped back to the ground, and quickly transformed back into his Harry form.

He crouched, gasping for breath. That had taken a lot of energy, more than he had been prepared or expecting to exert, but he shook his hair out of his eyes and looked over toward the Death Eaters. They were both collapsed against a wall, but appeared to be breathing - knocked completely unconscious and maybe bleeding a little from where their heads hit the brick, but they were alive.

He stopped, and just stared at them. He was almost...confused, alarmed, shocked. Had he really done that? Even after a year of being an Animagus, of becoming one of the first people along with Ron to turn into an animal, his overwhelming amount of power was unbelievable. He could turn into a monster, even if it was just a stupid little orangey-red fish...and he was a new definition of 'don't judge a book by it's cover.'

Harry stood up fully, shouldering his bag, and storing his wand in his pocket before he stepped quickly past the unconscious bodies. If he waited here too long they could awaken and track him to Grimmauld place. But Harry knew that he couldn't Apparate now - he had used too much of his power, he would never be able to find the strength to do it without Splinching.

He quickly walked through the crowds of people, heading towards the suburbs where he knew Grimmauld Place waited, striding as fast as he could without looking like he wasn't just in a normal hurry to get somewhere like a lot of the tourists around him.

He was distracted enough by keeping himself looking casual, but there was one thing he couldn't get out of his mind: He had turned into an Animagus in front of two Death Eaters. Two of Voldemort's servants. He hadn't even preformed a memory charm on them - he wasn't good at those. Now those two servants of the Dark Lord would go and report on their findings - that Harry Potter could turn into some strange creation with more power than they had ever seen. They would describe what had happened, and instead of Voldemort shaking it off as those two idiots imagining things, Voldemort would take it as seriously as the prophecy.

Harry knew what would happen now. Voldemort would track down this power and take it for himself so that the Boy Who Lived couldn't beat him at something else. He would find Pokemon and control them, and he would wreak havoc on the entire Wizarding world and even just the entire world until there was nothing left but him and his power.

So as Harry quickly strode through the streets of London, trying to get to Grimmauld Place without taking any more note from Voldemort's forces, all he could do was worry about what the future of his world would be.


End file.
